Prior known sensors and systems used for sensing hazardous agents include hand-held gas chromatography “sniffing” devices, spectral analyzers, biological testing cultures, live animal exposures, and Geiger counters. Hand-held gas chromatography, spectral analyzers, and Geiger counters are intended for spot measurement and are generally cumbersome, bulky, and traditionally complex and hard to rapidly deploy. Additionally, they are not intended for continual measurements except in a localized area. They also are typically stand-alone and do not incorporate other environmental conditions into their readings.
Biological testing using cultures does not provide immediate results. Generally, hazardous agent testing is limited to a single measurement and requires the tester to maintain a physical proximity to the potential hazard. Hazardous agent testing is typically practical to test in a small suspected contamination area.
Geiger counters and other radioactivity detection means do not provide assessment of the distribution of hazardous agents throughout the atmosphere at a range of altitudes and geographic locations.
All of the approaches above involve exposing the hazardous sensing element to the immediate environment to sense for a known contaminant at a fixed, single location. These approaches also require suspicion that such a potential threat exists. In each measurement approach difficulties and inaccuracies are introduced into the determination of a potential hazard by manual handling of the test. Additionally, other atmospheric factors such as winds aloft and convective activity that could potentially influence the spread of such a contaminant are not integrated into any of the above mentioned testing outputs. As such, the sensing and predicted path of a potential hazardous agent is not possible or is very difficult and limited under current approaches. Present methods of hazardous agent detection do not provide assessment of the distribution and dispersion of hazardous agents throughout the atmosphere at a range of altitudes and geographic locations.
The need exists for a method to rapidly measure the presence, distribution, and dispersion of hazardous agents in the atmosphere. Hazardous agents include biological, chemical, or radioactive agents resulting from accidents and terrorism incidents, and air pollution resulting from normal economic activities. A sensor for detecting hazardous agents and measuring specific air parameters in any airflow environment would be useful. An integrated sensing system suitable for aircraft mounted hazardous agent detection, combined with measurements of ambient atmospheric conditions, would be particularly useful. The sensing system would detect hazardous agents and provide the atmospheric information necessary to assess how those agents would be distributed and dispersed in the atmosphere due to winds, turbulence, and convective activity.
Prior known aircraft mounted probes for ice detection and air data collection are disclosed in U.S. Pat Nos. 6,430,996 and 6,425,286 to Anderson et al., incorporated herein by reference.